Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/132109
Grapes YAKIMA VALLEY opened the AVA door Mike Wallace is credited with leading efforts to create Washington's first appellation. by Melissa Hansen Mike Wallace, winemaker for nearly 40 years, is most proud of his Rainy Day Fine Tawny Port, winner of numerous medals at wine competitions. T he idea to designate Yakima Valley as Washington State's first American Viticultural Area came to Mike Wallace while he was visiting California's wine country in the early 1980s, when northern California growers and vintners were carving out appellations and subappellations. Wallace recalls attending a meeting at the Sonoma County courthouse, listening to testimony in support of creating new AVAs. "I heard what was needed to prove that an area was distinct and unique and thought, 'we can do that in Washington,'" he said. Good Fruit Grower interviewed Wallace in late spring as part of its in-depth look at the state's first appellation. Napa Valley was the first wine region approved in California, achieving AVA status in 1981, and was the second AVA approved in the nation after Augusta, Missouri. Later that year, Sonoma Valley received its AVA status. Although both areas today have 15 or more subappellations that have been carved from the original AVAs, the subappellation craze got started in Sonoma. When Wallace returned to Washington from his California trip, he convinced a group of growers and wineries to join him in developing the framework for the state's first AVA. AVA beginnings Appellations have been used for centuries in Europe to legally define and protect geographical indications and communicate to consumers where the grapes are grown. In the United States, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau of the Treasury Department designates wine grape growing regions based on distinguishable geographic features. History of the region, geology, microclimate, and natural boundaries are all part of the AVA petition process. Wallace enlisted the help of Helen Willard of Prosser to write the Your Solution To Farm Labor Housing. . . We offer a variety of floor plans that are customized to meet your needs. LARGEST BUILDER OF MANUFACTURED HOMES BEST INDUSTRY WARRANTY AVAILABLE Precision-built housing affordably priced and designed to provide strength and longevity, while offering comfortable amenities for a grower's work force. Ask for Silvestre Lozano . . . Serving Central Washington Growers For over 23 Years! Clayton Homes offers the Lowest Factory Direct Pricing . . . and won't be out priced ! Emails to: joseph.sarne@claytonhomes.com 509-452-9228 ® 36 June 2013 GOOD FRUIT GROWER 2010 Rudkin Road Union Gap, WA 98903 www.claytonyakimavalley.com www.goodfruit.com